Wad cutting and placing machine



Nov. 24, 1936. D. D. HUYETT WAD CUTTING AND PLACING MACHINE Filed Jan. 30, 1955 '7 Sheets-Sheet 1 Nov. 24, 1936. D. D. HUYETT WAD CUTTING AND PLACING MACHINE Filed Jan. 50, 1935 7 $heetsSheet 2 7 Sheets$heet 3 D. D. HUYETT WAD CUTTING AND PLACING MACHINE Filed Jan. 30,

go {L9 Nov. 24, 1936.

1936- D. D. HUYETT WAD CUTTING AND PLACING MACHINE Filed Jan. 30, 1953 7 $heets-Sheet 4 Nov. 24, 1936. D. D. HUYETT WAD CUTTING AND PLACING MACHINE Filed Jan. 50, 1933 7 Sheets-Sheet 5 x i Q Nov. 24, 1936. HUYETT 2,061,576

WAD CUTTING AND PLACING MACHINE Filed Jan. 50, 1935 7 Sheets-Sheet 6 Nov. 24, 1936. D HUYETT WAD CUTTING AND PLACING MACHINE Fil 3 1935 7 Sheets-Sheet 7 Patented Nov. 24, 1936 CUTTING AND PLACING MACHINE Daniel D. Huyett, Wilmington, n.1, assignor to Atlas Powder Company, Wilmington, DeL, a corporation of Delaware Application January 30, 1933, Serial No. 654,349

24 Claims.

This invention relates to a wad cutting and placing machine adapted to form and place wads simultaneously in the opposite ends of a simple paper tube constituting the carrier for an explosive substance, and it is a primary object of the invention to accomplish this result speedily and economically and also in such manner as to provide for the maximum of safety against possible explosions during such operation.

A very popular form of a cheap low explosive package is that marketed under the name "Blakstix. In the formation of this explosive package simple paper tubes open at both ends and formed of quite light weight paper are filled with black powder or like relatively low explosive; said powder being moist and more or less plastic when packed in said tubes. After the powder has been packed and levelled off in said tubes the packages are subjected to a drying operation under which the powder becomes quite hard. Wads or caps are then placed in each end of the paper tubes and the ends of the tubes are crimped over such wads to completely seal the packages.

Prior to my invention it has been necessary to place these wads in the ends of the tubes or packages, by hand. The machine of the present invention is designed to automatically cut the necessary material for the formation of wads, from strips of paper and place the wads in the ends of the tubes. The crimping of the ends of the tubes over the wads is not a function of the present invention'but is performed at another point and after the packages have left the machine of this application.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in the detailed description which follows:

In the accompanying drawings Figure 1 is a plan view of the machine constructed in accordance with the invention.

Figure 2 is a side elevation thereof.

Figure 3 is an end elevation.

Figure 4 is a plan view of a feed mechanism hereinafter described.

Figure 5 is a side elevation of the feed mechanism.

Figure 6 is a detailed perspective view of a guide plate hereinafter described.

Figure 7 is a horizontal sectional view through the die and cutting mechanism hereinafter described.

Figure 8 is a side elevation of the die and cutting mechanism.

Figure 9 is a transverse sectional view through the central portion of the machine illustrating the cartridge feeding mechanism.

Figure 10 is a side view,'upon an enlarged scale. of the cartridge feeding mechanism.

Figure 11 is a detailed view of a pawl and 5 ratchet mechanism hereinafter described and Figure 12 is a sectional view of a modified form of expander.

Like numerals designate corresponding parts in all the figures of the drawings. 10

In the drawings, 5 designates the supporting frame upon which the several instrumentalities hereinafter described are mounted. A main drive shaft 6 is driven by gear I, pinion 8, and pulley 9 from any suitable source of power. The drive shaft 6 carries bevelled pinions III at its opposite ends which act through bevelled pinions H to drive transverse shafts l2 of the wad cutting and forming members.

The wad cutting and forming mechanisms are substantially identical in construction and are mounted on the opposite ends of the machine so that the thrust of one of these mechanisms is balanced by the thrust of the other. That is to say, they act in opposition to each other to 25 simultaneously thrust the cut wads into the opposite ends of the tubes of the explosive cartridges and, therefore, the description of one of these mechanisms will serve as a description of both.

By referring to Figs. 3, 7, and 8, it will be seen that the cross shafts I2 carry a pair of cams i3 disposed upon opposite sides of a central cam H. The function of cams I3 is to thrust against rollers l5 that are carried by the cross head comprising side members IB, tie bar l1 and rods I8, 35 to thrust these parts toward the right in Fig. 7 and against the tension of springs IS. The springs i9 bear between a fixed frame member 20 and the flange 2| of a die carrier 22.

The die 23 has a flaring mouth 24 adapted to 40 receive and support the projecting end 25 of the tube 26 of the explosive cartridge; the tube entering the mouth of the die as the die moves toward the tube until the end of the tube abuts against the thimble 21. This thimble is rearwardly flared, 45 as indicated at 28. The die and thimble are removably mounted upon the die carrier by screws 29; the die, die carrier and a sleeve 30 being mounted for reciprocation together.

A sleeve 3| adjustably mounted through the 50 medium of a lock nut 32 in the fixed frame member 20 has its forwardly projecting portion 33 removably connected to the fixed annular cutter 34 by means of a split ring 35, said split ring being of channel formation and being adapted to en- 55 gage over the collars 36 and 31 of the cutter and extension 33, respectively. The rear face of the die 23 or the forward face of sleeve 36, as the case may be, or both of tl se elements, may be transversely channeled to provide a passage 38 for the strip of paper from which the wads are to be cut. The actual cutting is effected when the sharp rear edge39 of the die moyespover the sharp outerarid-forwai'di edgejof tl ie a uns at; ter 34; This die functions as both a cutting and a forming element for the paper caps or wads, as

herein described. I

In Figure '7, the parts are sh'own: in the posi--'.

tion that they occupy afterthe cutting ofthe paper has been effected b y'f'thejreartvard.move; ment of the die with respect to the annular cutter; the die having moved rearwardly past the during the cutting action. v --''A forming 'pluf er head 4| is mounted within the cutter 34'and is actuatedby a tubular-rod 42 under thelinfluence ofcam' I 4. After the paper has been out o'ff'by the actionof' cams i3, the

- springs l9 act'to yieldingly thrust the 'die 23t'owardthe tubes or cartridges 26 to thereby cause the free ends of said' tubes to enter the die to be supported by the same while the wads are being thrust into said tubes. At the same time -that the die starts"to move forwardlybr toward the tube; the-plunger 4| moves forwardly and the cams l3 and 4 are soshaped and arranged that the plunger mov'es'somewhat faster than the die so that by the time the tubes are positioned and seated inthe mouths of the dies, and said dies have come to rest, the plunger will have thrust the'paper disk 4|] forwardly in such manner as to cause the flared portion'28 of th'e'thimble to cup the edge of the disk and to bring said disk into position to immediately enter the mouth or open end of the tube- 26. It is also important'to note that the flanged wad is moving forward through thedrawing throat, as'the shell or tube ispositioned and seated in the mouth of the die. This assures against any loose particles of explosive, which may fall out at this point, dropping into the cutting-and forming portions of the die. Any loose particles which may fall out\of the shell willbeQwith completesafety, pushed'back into the cartridge by the advancing wad.

'-It'will be observedfth'at the rearward or cutting I action of the die is a positive one under the action of cams'13, while the forward movement of the die is a cushioned one under the action of springs I9. Conversely, the action of the plunger 4| forwardly is a-positive one under the movement of cam |'4,'while the rearward movement of the plunger is a cushioned one under the action of a spring 43 which surrounds the rod 42 and bears between a shoulder of sleeve 3| jand av washer 44 disposed in front of a forked element 45 which carries a roller 46 against-which the cam 4 thrusts. A laterallyextending arm 41 supDQrted from the forked-member 45 moves r d. 48 that straighten the ends of the tubes and bring them to truly circular formation so that when they enter the dies they will hug the same snugly entir l aro nd the circum eren e the e This insures .that. there willibeno inward-1y indented ends' upon the tubes to prevent the ready entry of; the wads into said tubes. The foregoing action of expanding block 50, in shaping the ends ofithetubes', takes place at the time the tube is at thebottom of the guideway comprised by ele- 'nientsistp gz (Fig'9)'and hereinafter described. ,That is, the ex'par'ifder acts upon the lowermost of the tubesfeeding down, and still in, the guide- 1 way comprised by said elements 19 to 82.

The structure just described lends itself to the ready substitution of other sizes of dies, forming plungers 'and'cutters. when desired; it :being apparent-that -by the mere removal of the-screws 2 9 the die and thimble may be removed and others substituted. vFurther, since the formingheads 4| arelthreaded upon the end of the rods 42, other sizes of heads may be substituted and other-sizes of cutters may be substituted for those shown by moving the parts to such position that the split ring 35 iswexposed beyond the rear end 01' sleeve 3|]. When this occurs the two halves of the split ring may be lifted out of engagement with-the collars'36 and'3'l to permit the substitution of a difierent size of cutter 34.

The" paper rolls from which'the wads are cut are indicated at 52, and the paper webs 53 from these rolls pass downwardly between the pairs of feed rollers 54, 55 that are supported in a feed mechanism frame 56. The roller 54 of each pair is driven by bevelled pinions 51 from a common drive shaft 58. Motion may be imparted to this shaft by hand, through the medium of a hand wheel 59; this being of convenience in the threading of the paper through the rolls. However, the drive of the shaft 58, when the machine is in operation, is through the medium of a pawl and ratchet mechanism 60 that is actuated by a rack bar 6|. This rack bar slides through a housing 62 that is hung from the shaft 58, and its teeth 63 engage the teeth of a pinion 64. The pinion 64 is fast'with a disk 65, said disk carrying pawls 66 which engage the teeth of a ratchet wheel 61 that is fast upon the shaft 58. Pinion 64 and disk 65 are loose upon said shaft 58.

The opposite end of the rack bar 6| is pivoted, at 68, to a block 69 that is slidably adjustable along a slot of a swinging crank arm H; the adjustment of the pivot point 68 along said slot determining the length of throw of the rack bar and consequently determining the extent of the feeding movement of the feed rollers. The crank arm pivotally mounted. at I2, upon the machine frame, is actuated by a cam 13 on shaft 6; said cam engaging a roller 14 on the crank arm.

A downward extension of the crank arm is connected by a spring 16 with the opposite side of the machine frame, said spring acting to h ld the roller 14 in engagement with the periph' y of cam 13. From the feed rollers 54, 55 1e paper passes downwardly through swinging guide plates 11, said guide plates being hingedly connected, at 18, to the feed mechanism frame 56 beneath the feed rollers. These guide plates comprise merely strips of sheet metal turned over at their opposite edges to channel formation and serve to guide and support the paper strips on their way to the dies; this hinged mounting percome to rest upon the arcuate upper face 83 of a swinging member comprising a substantially U- shaped bracket 84, see Figs. 9 and 10, mounted upon a rock shaft 85, and the upstanding legs 86 of which have trackway sections 81 adjustably connected thereto by means of bolts 88 and 89. These bolts pass through slots 98, 9I, of the said legs 86 and take into the trackway sections 81. said trackway sections having the arcuate upper faces hereinafter described.

This arrangment renders it possible to provide for any desired radial or lateral adjustment of the positions of the trackways 83. The U-shaped bracket 84 comprises a web 92 which serves to receive the thrust of a spring 93, said spring surrounding a rod 94 which passes through an inclined extension of web 92 and has a nut 95 upon its lower end. The rod 94 in turn carries a bifurcated head having pivotal engagement, at 96. with a yieldable detent 91; the latter being pivoted, at 98, to the U-shaped bracket and swinging back and forth with said bracket and associated parts under the influence of a link 99 which engages a crank arm I88 on the shaft 85; said link being adjustable as to length through the medium of a turnbuckle I8I. This link is pivotally connected, at I82, to a rocker arm I83; the latter being pivoted, at I84, and carrying a roller I85 which engages a cam I86 on main shaft 6. This construction acts to swing the parts 81, 84 and 91 back and forth, and when in the swing of the part 81 toward the left, in Fig. 9, the forward corners 81a of the trackway sections 81 pass from beneath the lowermost cartridge in the group still retained in the guide ways 88, BI. and 82, said lowermost package drops on to a fixed trackway composed of fixed trackway sections I81 having arcuate upper faces I88.

Vertical leg extensions I89 of these fixed trackway sections are slotted at II8 for the passage of adjusting bolts III by which they are held to the machine frame and by which said trackway sections may be given any desired adjustment to accommodate the particular diameter cartridges being operated upon.

When the lowermost cartridge drops upon the fixed trackway constituted by the arcuate faces I88 it lies between the forward face of the trackway sections 81 and the rear side of the yieldable detent 91, and when these parts again move forward or toward the right, in Fig. 9, the cartridge is caused to roll along the track I88 until it rides beneath a pair of yieldable fingers II2; said fingers being pivotally mounted, at II3, upon a bracket II4, said bracket being adjustably mounted with respect to the feed roller frame by means of the bolt and slot construction, indicated at II5. Upward movement of the yieldable detent fingers H2 is against the tension of springs II6, the tension of which may be adjusted by the screws I I1.

When the package has been brought into engagement with and is seated in the indentation H8 of the detent fingers, it then lies in alignment with the dies, and after the dies engage the ends of the package to hold it. and the feed mechanism parts again swing rearwardly preparatory to engaging and moving another cartridge into said receiving position, the detent 91 yields downwardly so that it rides beneath the said cartridge and gets in the rear thereof. Then, when the feed mechanism again swings forwardly with the newly received cartridge, the forward face 91a of the yieldable detent acts against the cartridge which has had the wads placed therein, to thrust said cartridge forwardly along the trackway and out of engagement with the fingers H2 and to and up-,

on a conveyor III! by which the packages are conveyed away from the machine and to a' separate crimping mechanism.

A spring H9 is engaged with the machine frame and with crank arm I88 and tends to move the roller I 85 into engagement with the cam I86. The pivot I82 consists of a readily removable pin so that when desired said pin may be quickly removed and the link 99 released to permit the feed mechanism to be swung outwardly and downwardly until it rests upon the frame member a., see Fig. 9. The guide consisting of the parts 88, 8|; and 82 is held in engagement with the fixed trackways I81 by interengaging guide ways 88:; and bolt and slot connections 88b. The fixed trackways are also readily removable; the result being that all necessary portions of the feed mechanism may be easily and quickly moved out of the way when it is desired to change dies and cutting mechanisms.

In Figure 12 I have illustrated and described another form of expander for the tubes, which may be employed in lieu of the tapered plugs 58. This modified form of expander is even more reliable than the tapered plugs in that, while the tapered plugs 58 are serviceable when the ends of the tubes are only slightly out of shape, badly bent tubes may be even further crushed by said plugs. To avoid this I may utilize a type of expander that is somewhat more expensive but which is very reliable in that it is caused to enter the open ends of the tubes or shells in a contracted condition and is thereafter expanded to straighten the ends of the said tubes.

In Fig. 12, 48 designates the reciprocatory shaft, hereinbefore described, said shaft being attached by a coupling I25 to a shaft I26. A reduced extension I21 of this shaft is threaded into an expander plug I28; the tapered end I29 of which is adapted to engage inwardly directed cam projections I38 of a plurality of expander fingers I 3|. The rear ends of these fingers are flanged, as indicated at I32, and these flanged portions are secured i 1 a nut I33 to the collar I34 of a sleeve I35. A compression spring I36 bears between the forward end of this sleeve and shoulder I 26a. of the shaft I25. The func tion of this spring is to cause sleeve I35 to follow the expander plug I28 in its forward travel until a collar I31 upon said sleeve abuts the rear end of the bearing I38. Then the sleeve is held against further forward movement, but by this time the contracted end of a rubber expanding sleeve I39, which surrounds the fingers I3I, has entered the open end 25 of the explosive package or shell. Continued forward movement of the plug I28 with respect to the the'plugjcting against the projections 180 to :expand the fingers ,l8l to the dotted linepposition. illustrated, thereby straightening the end -of the tube 25. ;The position of the bearing I 38 may be adjusted laterally to center, the ex.- pander with respect-to the particular diameter of ,explosiveshell being worked upon. The expander fingers ISI may be in one piecewith the collar 182; this element being made from what is originally a tubular member sawed longitudinally at a plurality of points to provide any desired number of. fingers separated from each other by such sawing and consequently, rendered I laterally yieldable at their free en prising a die having a mouth shaped to receive and support the end of a paper tube, a fixed annular cutter with which the die coacts in its movement away from the position occupied by the tube when the latter is in wad receiving position, means for feeding paper across said die and cutter to supply the material necessary for the formation of a paper wad, and means for reciprocating the die with respect to said cutter.

2. A device of the character described comprising a die having a mouth shaped to receive and support the end of a paper tube, a fixed annular cutter with which the die coacts in its movement away from the position occupied by the tube when the latter is in wad receiving position, means for feeding paper across said die and cutter to supply the material necessary for the formation of a paper wad, means for reciprocating the die with respect to said cutter, and a plunger operable through the cutter and die for thrusting the cut paper through the die and into the open end of said tube.

3. A structure as recited in claim 1 wherein the movement of the die rearwardly in its cutting action is a positive one and its movement toward the tube is spring-actuated.

4. A structure as recited in claim 1 in combination with a plunger operated through the cutter and die to thrust the cut wad through the die and into the open end of the paper tube, the movement of the, die rearwardly being a positive one and movement of the die forwardly being spring-actuated and the movement of the plunger forwardly being a positive one and the movement of the plunger rearwardly being spring actuated.

5. Means for feeding open ended paper tubes into alignment with wad forming and placing mechanisms comprising a trackway along which said tubes travel, a second trackway upon which said tubes are delivered and along which they are adapted to be rolled, a swinging member adapted to engage behind said tubes and roll them along the last named trackway, and a yieldable detent movable with said member which lies in front of said tubes until a tube reaches a position of alignment with respect to the wad forming mechanisms and thereafter rides beneath and engages behind said tube, and means for actuating said swinging member through such distance that on its next succeedsleeve, i3! results in the tapered end l2 or ing stroke its forward side engages the tube already worked on and thrusts it out of alien-- ment with the said forming and placing mech- ..anism.

6. A structure as recited in claim 5 in combination with yieldable members disposed above said tubes which engage with the tubes and bind them between said yieldable members and '7. A structure as recited in claim 5 in combination with yieldable members disposed above said tubes which engage with the tubes and bind them between said yieldable members and the second named trackway at the forward limit of movement of the swinging member to thereby hold said tubes against movement during the time that the wad-forming and cutting members are moving into and out of engagement with said tubes, said yielding members being forwardly elongated to maintain their engagement with the said tubes and to exert a retarding influence thereon during the time that the yieldable detent is acting to thrust the tubes from said receiving position to the point at which it leaves the second named trackway.

8. A machine of the character described comprising a pair of opposed wad-cutting and forming mechanisms, a pair of feeding mechanisms supported thereabove and acting to feed strips of material to and across the wad forming mechanisms, an inclined trackway disposed substan-- tially centrally of the machine and delivering open ended paper tubes horizontally into the machine at one side thereof, a conveyor leading away from the machine at the opposite side thereof in substantial alignment with said trackway, and a feeding mechanism disposed between the trackway and the conveyor comprising a pair of fixed trackway members spaced from each other and having convex upper faces over which the said tubes are adapted to roll, a swinging member swinging back and forth along the last named or convex trackway and projecting thereabove, said swinging member likewise having a convex upper face adapted to ride beneath said tubes, said tubes being adapted to drop from the convex upper face of the said swinging member upon the convex upper face of the fixed members when said swinging members move rearwardly from beneath said tubes, a yieldable detent travelling with the swinging member and projecting forwardly with respect to the same to provide a space into which said tubes drop, the forward face of said swinging member acting against the rear side of the tube to thrust the same forwardly along the fixed trackway to a position of alignment with the said wad-forming and cutting mechanisms, said detent yielding to permit it to ride beneath the cartridge in reverse movement of the swinging member and said detent acting to thrust the tubes along the fixed trackway in the next forward movement of the swinging member.

9. A structure as recited in claim 8 in combination with a pair of yieldable fingers disposed above the said fixed trackway and engaging the upper sides of the tubes to hold them against movement until said tubes are thrust from beneath said yieldable fingers under the action of the said detent.

10. An expander for the ends of explosive filled paper shells comprising an expansible structure, a plug for expanding the same, a 1ongitudinally movable shaft, spring means causing the expander tofollow the movement of said shaft and plug until the expander has entered the open end of a shell and for moving the plug to expand the expander independently ofthe endwise movement of said expander after said expander has been seated in the open end of said shell.

11." A machine of the character described comprising a pair of wad cutting and forming mechanisms disposed in alignment with each other and movable toward and from each other, and means for feeding paper tubes open at both ends into alignment with said mechanisms, said mechanisms acting to cut and form wads and thrust them simultaneously and in opposition to each other into the open ends of said tubes and means for effecting the cutting of the wads during the movement of said mechanisms away from the tubes.

12. A machine of the character described comprising a pair of mechanisms disposed in a line with each other, means for simultaneously moving said mechanisms toward each other and from each other, each of said mechanisms comprising a fixed annular cutter, a die mounted to reciprocate with respect to said cutter and a wad forming and forcing plunger operable through said die, said dies being shaped to receive and support the open ends of paper tubes, means for feeding tubes into alignment with said dies, means for feeding strips across the dies and cutter, and means for actuating the said dies and plungers in such timed relation and in such manner that the strips are cut to form wads during the movement of the ,dies away from the tubes and the plungers advance with the dies toward the tubes but at a faster rate than said dies so that the formed caps thrust into the tubes by said plungers are being moved toward the tubes during the time that the dies are moving into alignment with the ends of said tubes whereby any loose particles of the contents of said tubes are moved away from the dies simultaneously with the seating of the latter upon the ends of the tubes.

13. A machine of the character described comprising a pair of mechanisms disposed in a line with each other, means for moving said mechanisms bodily toward and from each other, means for feeding filled tubes open at both ends laterally into alignment with said mechanisms, said mechanisms comprising elements for forming and cutting wads and thrusting them simultaneously and in opposition to each other into the open ends of said tubes, and a member for straightening an' end of said tubes prior to their movement into alignment with the adjacent mechanisms; comprising an expander located to one side of the said mechanisms and acting in substantial parallelism therewith, said expander comprisingportions adapted to enter an end of said shells, means for maintaining the expander in contracted condition during its entry into the end of a shell, and means for automatically expanding said expander after its entry into the end of said shell to thereby bring the ends of the shell to truly circular formation to adapt said ends for engagement by the wad cutting and forming mechanisms, said expander being so located as to act upon the tubes after their entry into the feeding means of the machine, and prior to the arrival of said tubes at wad-placing position.

14. A device of the character described comprising a die having a mouth shaped to receive and support the end of a paper tube, a fixed annular cutter with which the die co-acts in its movement away from the position occupied by the tube when the latter is in wad receiving position, means for feeding a web of wad material across said die and cutter to supply the material necessary for the formation of a wad, means for reciprocating the die with respect to said cutter, and means for feeding a paper tube into alignment with the die after the cutting ofl of the wad has been effected.

15. A machine of the character described comprising. agpair of wad cutting and forming mech-- anisms disposed in alignment with each other and movable toward and from each other, and means for feeding paper tubes open at both ends into alignment with said mechanisms, said mechanisms acting to cut and form wads and thrust them simultaneously and in opposition to each other into the open ends of said tubes and means for effecting the cutting of the wads during the movement of said mechanisms away from the tubes and prior to the bringing of the paper tubes into alignment with saidmechanisms.

16. A machine of the character described comprising a pair of wad cutting and forming mechanisms disposed in alignment with each other, and movable toward and from each other, means for feeding paper tubes open at both ends, into alignment with said mechanisms, said feeding means comprising track ways along which the tubes roll, and means for moving the tubes along said track ways, the wad cutting and forming mechanism acting to cut and form wads and thrust them simultaneously and in opposition to each other into the open ends of said tubes, and tube straightening members shaped and dimensioned to enter the open ends of the tubes, said straightening members being positioned to act upon the tubes after their entry into the feed track ways of the machine, and prior to their arrival at capping position, and actuating means for said straightening members moving in synchronism with the tube feeding means and acting to move the said members into and out of the ends of said tubes at a time when the said tubes are at rest.

17. A machine of the character described comprising a pair of wad cutting and forming mechanisms disposed in alignment with each other and movable toward and from each other, means for feeding paper tubes open at both ends into alignment with said mechanisms, said mechanisms acting to cut and form wads and thrust them simultaneously and in opposition to each other into the open ends of said tubes, the said feeding means imparting step-by-step movement to said tubes to bring them to cap receiving position, a pair of reciprocating plugs movable toward and from each other and disposed in the path of travel of said tubes and at a point to act upon said tubes after they enter into the feeding means of said machine and prior to their arrival at capping position, said plugs having end portions shaped to enter the ends of the tubes and straighten them, and actuating means for said plugs moving in synchronism with the feeding means of the tubes to cause said plugs to enter and leave the tubes when said tubes are in a position of rest.

18. A machine of the character described comprising a wad cutting and forming mechanism, means for feeding paper tubes into alignment with and prior to the arrival of said tubes at wad-re ceiving position, and actuating mechanism for saidtube straightening member moving in synchronism with the tube feeding means and causing the straightening member to enter and leave said tubes while they are at rest.

19. A device of the character described comprising a die, a fixed annular cutter with which the die coactsin its movement away from the position occupied by a tube when the latter is in wad-receiving position, means for feeding paper across said die and cutter to supply the material necessary for the formation of a paper wad, and means for reciprocating the die with respect to s id cutter. V

,20. A device of the character described comprising a die, a fixed annular cutter with which the die coacts in its movement away from the position occupied by a tube when the-latter is in wad receiving position, means for feeding paper across said die and cutter to supply the material necessary for the formation of a paper wad, means for reciprocating the die with respect to said cutter, and a plunger operable through the cutter and die for thrusting the cut paper through the die and into the open end of said tube.

21. The combination with a machine for forming and placing paper wads into the open ends of cylindrical tubes, of a feeding mechanism comprising a trackway along which the tubes are rolled upon their sides into alignment with the cap placing mechanism, means for imparting step by step movement to said tubes along said trackway, an expander adjacent said trackway, actuating means for the expander synchronized with the feeding mechanism to move the expander into the open ends of the tubes during their period of rest to thereby bring said tubes to truly circular form after their entry into the feeding mechanism and prior to their arrival at cap placing position.

22. A wad cutting and placing machine for explosive containing receptacles, said machine comprising means supporting an explosive containing receptacle, and means adjacent said supporting means for cutting a wad, said second means moving away from the first means during the cutting operation.

23. A wad cutting and placing machine for explosive containing receptacles, said machine comprising means supporting an explosive containing receptacle, means adjacent said supporting means for cutting a wad, said second means moving away from the first means during the cutting operation, andmeans for placing the cut wad in the end of the receptacle.

24. A wad cutting and placing machine for explosive containing receptacles, said machine comprising means supporting an explosive containing receptacle, and a movable cutting die adjacent said supporting means for cutting a wad, said cutting die moving away from the supporting means during the cutting operation.

" DANIEL D. HUYETT. 

